INSPIRED | Style : Michael Fisher

At 17, he worked for Annie Leibovitz. Now, Michael Fisher is a wardrobe stylist for the likes of Paul Rudd and Jonah Hill.

People often make career changes. It can lead to better work satisfaction, more money, but it is a risk and you don’t often know how it will pan out until you make the jump. Michael Fisher jumped.

At 28, he was a photographer’s archivist, and looking to do something bigger, something better. It wasn’t his inclination to move into wardrobe styling, but the recommendation came from his partner. “He was a designer and had a ton of clothes laying all over the place, and it kinda started with me wearing his clothes to go to work the next morning, and he would see his wardrobe on me put together in a different way.”

At the time, Fisher was not a professional stylist. He was just good at it. Now, his clients include Mickey Rourke, James Corden, Jonah Hill, and Paul Rudd. And that’s just to name a few.

Fisher got his big break when he was hired to curate the wardrobe, including red carpet looks, of Mickey Rourke, at a very critical time for Rourke – following his big comeback after starring in the Oscar-nominated The Wrestler. Listening to Fisher speak about the principles he brings to his craft, it sounds as though he couldn’t have been a better fit for this particular celebrity, at this particular time. The results were a grave success; Rouke’s style drew public acclaim, and he invited Fisher to attend the awards show with him. Sounds like a satisfied client.

Looking back Fisher acknowledges that his start in the industry wasn’t one with youthful roots. “I didn’t come at this field with a love of clothes. I came at it with a love of photography and art and image making.” While Fisher’s hard-earned success sounds glamorous, it is not always painless. His advice to those trying to follow a similar path is simple, “If you want in to this industry, you have to be willing to work really hard.”